With the arrival of spring, students and faculty at The Storm King School have been taking every opportunity to teach and learn outside while enjoying the fresh air and sunshine.  For the 9th grade class, the Blue Cliff Monastery in Pine Bush, New York, was the perfect place for a class trip to learn and experience a full day of mindfulness training.
Nestled on 80 acres of woodland, Blue Cliff Monastery is a mindfulness practice center and monastic training center founded by the Vietnamese Buddhist monk, author, and peace activist and teacher, Thich Nhat Hanh.

During their visit, the students spent the day enjoying the monastery’s peaceful surroundings, taking a walk around the grounds, stopping at a waterfall, practicing meditation, and eating a silent lunch alongside the monks. The day also included a video lecture by Thich Nhat Hanh and a lively Q&A session.

Here is what the 9th Grader Jiann L. ’26 had to say about the experience:

“The monastery was very beautiful and peaceful, and I had a great time enjoying nature. We learned about happiness. We also had a silent lunch where I could fully enjoy my food. We mostly focused on what we do in our present life. We practiced doing one thing at a time and actually being conscious of what we are doing– eating, walking, touching something, etc… I noticed that I do a lot of things without noticing or knowing it, and it is not so easy to fully understand and know what I do in my daily life.”

“Mindfulness has been a theme for the 9th-grade class this year,” commented 9th Grade Advisor Mr. Carruthers, who accompanied the students. “In their Global Art class, we looked at many different cultures and tried to see what was unique and what the commonalities were. One thing that came up frequently was a search for peace and/or contentment that flows through all the ethical systems we examined. Because Blue Cliff Monastery focuses not only on personal peace but, through that, world peace, it was an excellent trip to wrap up our studies.”